The writing portfolio that I have submitted includes
three papers, differing dramatically in their content and style.I feel that the papers which I have included are representative and
reflective of my talents, interests, strengths, and weaknesses as a writer.The papers reveal the struggles that I have faced while creating
the written texts, but they are also indicative of my growth and improvement.

The first and longest paper in the
portfolio is a personal essay entitled "The Village Theater."This paper was the first Writing Project in
my Freshmen Seminar syllabus, and was outlined as such: "Write a
series of memories concerning your experiences with films and movie theaters."
By our third draft, the syllabus dictated that we "focus on beginning
to construct a real essay, a paper which focuses on your richest experiences
and insights concerning your involvement with movies and theaters."

This Writing Project appeared to
be too utterly simple!I had a
thousand memories concerning the theater that I could easily relate.I actually looked forward to constructing this
paper, and was therefore disheartened when I encountered numerous difficulties
after the completion of the first draft.To begin the first draft, I had sat down and generated five hand-written
sheets. Dr. A. had reassured us
that the first draft needn't be too organized, or even completely coherent.The important thing was that we managed to put our thoughts and
memories on paper.

When I reread my pen scratches I
was shocked by the direction and tone that my paper had taken.To begin with, I had detailed my personal preferences
concerning movie-theater refreshments, which resulted in a rather dull
reading.My paper took a sudden
and unsettling turn, though, as I refocused on describingfirst-date-at-the-movie-theater scenario.My transition between thoughts was rough, yet I was pleased with
the appearance of the date scene in my piece.Certainly everybody has a memory of a date in a theater; I felt
that I had discovered a fitting topic for the piece.

I found consent in my peers after
distributing copies of my draft and receiving commentaries.Eric H.commented,
"Your perception of movies and their role in dating is very accurate."
Elizabeth R. wrote, "Your paper is great!It had great description and humorous sarcasm,
which makes it very cute." Most of the other reactions were quite
similar, and though I appreciated their praise, I felt that they were
far too generous, and I was also somewhat disappointed that I could find
no constructive criticism or suggestions in their reviews.

My previous writing assignments
had rarely required that I relate personal memories through essays.As a regretful consequence of my particular course loads and teachers,
I had found myself in classes requiring only the generation of analytical
or argumentative papers.Granted, these particular styles of writing
are valuable and important, yet I was fully aware of the perhaps equal
importance of the personal essay to a writer, and was painfully conscious
of my shortcomings in this area.Therefore,
with this particular assignment, I found myself experimenting with an
entirely new format of expression, and also discovered a new voice, one
in which I had never previously written.

This new voice was, as Elizabeth
described it, "humorous sarcasm".I didn't consider myself to be a comedian, or even sarcastic by nature,
and yet there were traces of both humor and sarcasm throughout the piece.I concluded that those elements must have been reflective of the
strange mood that I was in that day when I began the assignment.I certainly didn't find myself in that same mood once again as
I sat to write my second draft, and yet I desperately wanted to continue
with this newly discovered tone.But how?

I struggled through two drafts,
trying to cling to this new style.Yet
with each revision I realized that the paper needed expansion, length,
and detail.To do this I knew that
I would have to narrow my focus, become more personal through my reflections.I also realized, regretfully, that I couldn't keep with the same
style if I were to add a more personal feel to the piece.My first two drafts had a detached air, peppered with vague generalizations
concerning the female/male dating relationship.My peers had related that these generalizations were what granted
the paper its humorous air, which I wanted to carry over to the final
draft, yet I felt that I couldn't expand the paper without foregoing these
generalizations.As I attempted to sharpen the piece with personal
reflections, I found myself questioning the accuracy of these generalizations.Needless to say, I was frustrated.

I went to Dr. A. for some scholarly
advice on how to remedy my situation.After hearing my frustrations and anxieties concerning the piece,
he suggested that I turn my focus solely on the first-date-at-the-theater
experience.He recommended that
I generate as much text as possible relating to my memories of this initial
Village Theater date.He told me
not to worry about tone or style while focusing on this particular task,
and suggested that I address those particular issues after completing
this "generation of thoughts".He also hinted that I might be surprised after reading through
the pages.

How right he was!At the completion of this suggestion, I found
myself with over ten pages of printed material.Perusing the text, I was astonished to find much of the same humorous
tone in this new version.With
a little revision, I was quite satisfied with the finished piece.I felt that I had remained true to my memories,
while at the same time successfully exposed and examined some of the intricacies
of the infamous first date.

The second paper which I have chosen
to include is one with a more academic focus.The piece is entitled "The Film Medium in
History."This paper addresses the question: How may the film medium accurately
function as a history-teller or history-maker?This piece required a great deal of reading, discussion, and research,
as the answer to this question is both complex and controversial in the
academic world.This piece forced me to think, to organize,
and to revise, revise, revise.Perhaps
the most difficult paper of the semester, it is the one with which I am
least pleased.

The final paper in the portfolio
is from my Introduction to Biology Lab, with Professor B.The lab report is entitled "Correlation of Leaf
Length and Vein Number in Northern Pin Oak, Quercus Palustris."I was quite familiar and comfortable with the
scientific form required in formal lab reports; in high school I had focused
in the sciences, taking several Biology course which called for such lab
reports.Nevertheless, with this
first lab report in college, I encountered a few difficulties, perhaps
the most obvious concerning the computer Network.Never before had I come in contact with such software programs
as Minitab, a statistical software program.I found myself frustrated when attempting to transport graphs and
statistical data from Minitab to WordPerfect.Perhaps my satisfaction with this lab report is a direct result
of my having conquered and mastered those "difficult" computer
skills!

In closing, I reflect that these
past four months at Coe have forced me to become familiarized with a broad,
encompassing array of writing styles and techniques.I realize that further work is necessary with
each individual component, yet I remain optimistic that improvement will
inevitably result and am pleased with my personal growth as a writer.